Gas plant



A. L. CLARK.

GAS PLANT.

APPLICATION FILED AUG-27, 1919.

1,403,590. t t an- '17, 1922.

llll I III g i lllli ul I l I i l l l I g fill/522161 6701/0 UNITED STATES E3ATENT OFFICE.

AUGUSTUS L. CLARK, OF IVIONTPELIER, VERMONT.

GAS PLAN T.

To all quiz-0m it may concern:

Be it known that i. AUGUSTUS L. CLARK, a citizen of the United States, residing at lllontpelier, in the county of Washington and State of Vermont, have invented a new and useful Gas Plant, of which the follow ing is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide an improved apparatus which can be uti lizcd generally in connection with house furnaces of ordinary construction, with slight modification for the manufacture of gas by each householder for his individual use and to provide an improved process whereby gas can be produced and stored by suitable airtight doors and dampers, such as the door 3 and damper 2. Within the rched chamber 37 of the furnace 1 pro vide a plurality of gas domes or retorts 4,

arranged as shown, through which the gas may flow upward through tlues '5 and escape through perforations 8 into'the water in the main 6, the tar in the products of combustion being stopped by the water, the water line 7 being a short distance above the perforations 8. From main 6 the gas flows through stackt), which is provided with a suitable valve 10, and into a suitable scrubber tank 11 which is provided with a suitable door 13 and a grate 12.

In scrubber tank 11 I provide coke or other suitable fine material that filters the gas. From scrubber tank 11 the gas passes through tube 1%, past a suitable valve 15, and gage 21 upward through outlet 19 into the adjustable relief tank chamber 17. Mounted in relief tank 16 are spaced vertical screws 22, operated by suitable hand wheels 23, by means of which chamber 17 be raised or lowered. Suction is caused by elevating chamber 17 by means of the Specification of Letters Patent. Patentgd J an, 17, 1922 Application filed August 27, 1919. Serial No. 320,197.

screws 22 and hand wheels 23, which lifts the tank 17 out of the water (designated 18). After the relief tank has been filled with gas, the valve is closed, and the tank chamber 17 again lowered, and the gas forced through nozzle 20 of pipe 24, past valve and into the purifier tank 26, suitable material for purifying the as being provided on the grate 27 in tank 26. Tank 26 may be provided with a suitable quantity of oxide of iron, which is used for purifying the to eliminate the. sulphur smell. The gas entering tank 26 flows in below the grate 27 thence up through'the purifying material, and thence through pipe 29. past valve 30 into the inverted chamber 32, which is slidably mounted in the storage tank 31. To eliminate friction, I provide suitable bearings 33 between tank 31 and inverted tank 32. l place'anv suitable weight on the top of tank 32, if de sired. Opening out of tank 31, I provide a pipe 35, having a valve 36, for regulating the discharge of the gas for use as required. Tank 32 is provided with a suitable pressure indicating gage 37, and any required weights 38 may be placed on top of the tank. as indicated diagrammatically in the draw Storage tanks 31 and 32 of anv suitable may be provided. v

In operating the invention, soft coal is employed, a very considerable economy be ing eifected by obtaining and storing the gas for use,while from it coke is obtained which can be burned in stove or furnace. The plant is adaptable to operating with a small amount of material, making it more generally available. The detailed operation has been described above.

hat I claim is:

1. In a small gas plant apparatus adapted elief tank comprisinga main closed chamoer, inverted chamber within said main for usein connection with house furnaces, a

chamber and in communication therewith at the open bottom end of the inverted chamber, elongated threaded rods attached to the upper end of the inverted chamber and extending through the upper end of the main chamber to raise and lower said chamber whereby to produce a suction action, hand wheels for operating said threaded rods, means for conducting gas into said inverted chamber from gas producing apparatus, and means for the outflow of gas from said chamber to gas storage apparatus,

each of the two aforesaid mean for the passage of gas to and from the relief tank havmg valve controlled means, the rellef tank 7 being partially filled with water.

. verted chamber and extending through the cover of the main chamber for raising and lowering the inverted chamber by hand to suck in and discharge gas therefrom, the said mainand inverted chambers being partially filled with water, conduits for conducting gas into and from the inverted chamber, said conduits having their open ends positioned above the level of the water therein, and valve means in the various conduits for regulating the flow of gas whereby the apparatus may be readily operated by hand, without the use of weights or of pumps or other heavy apparatus such as is required. in larger gas plants.

3. In a gas plant apparatus suited for use in connection with house furnaces, the combination of gas retorts, a scrubber tank into which gas from the retorts flows, said tank being substantially filled "with filtering material, a relief tank into which gas from the suction tank is drawn by suction, said tank including a main chamber, an inverted chamber, screws connected to the inverted chamber, and handwheels attached to the upper ends of said screws for manually raising and lowering the chamber, a purifier tank into which gas from the relief tank is delivered, and a stora 'e tank into which gas from the purifier tank is delivered, and a piurality of conduits and valves operatively connecting the aforesaid tanks and retorts, substantially as set forth.

AUGUSTUS L. crank 

